The Namikaze Requiem
by jasonturnerdragonmaster
Summary: After witnessing Gaara's apparent 'death,' Naruto's Hiraishin bloodline activates.  Now he must deal with the Akatsuki and the Council's call to restore his clan. Naru/Harem


Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any other Anime/Manga or Videogame that I might reference. I do own any OCs that I use and any jutsu that I create.

Summary: Upon catching up to Deidara and Sasori, Naruto sees his best friend Gaara seemingly dead on the ground. As the emotions of watching Gaara, someone whom he felt a sense of brotherhood with, fall 'dead', his Hiraishin Bloodline activates leaving no doubts to anyone who his father is. Now, Naruto must face both the threat of Akatsuki, the truth about his family, and the Council's wishes. Who will help him restore his clan and bring the Akatsuki to justice?

**Author's Note: I just wanted to point out a few things before we start. In this story, Naruto is smarter than he is in canon. Another thing is that during his training trip Jiraiya really trained him hard. He really came back better than before. Also, he is a Chunin already. I mean come on he should have been after defeating both Neji and Gaara.**

**The Namikaze Requiem**

**Chapter 1: Face the Truth**

A young man rushed through the forest searching for signs of Team Kakashi. His spiky silver hair blew in the wind as his blood red eyes scanned the surrounding area for any sign of them. He had to get there in time. He just had to. He pushed himself moving faster than ever on sheer will. Finally, he came to a clearing and saw them standing down there. Team Gai disappeared, and the barrier covering the mouth of the cave broke.

The young pink-haired girl, Sakura Haruno, punched the stone with all her might shattering it into a million pieces. He looked on at the sight impressed that Tsunade had done such a good job training this girl. After a moment, he turned his attention to the young man standing next to her with spiky blonde hair and blue eyes. Naruto Uzumaki was known as the most unpredictable ninja to ever wear the Konoha headband. He was also known for turning enemies into friends. That's quite an amazing feat considering that he has been hated and mistreated most of his life.

The next person in the young man's line of sight was Kakashi Hatake. He was known as the Copy-Nin because of the Sharingan Eye that he was given by his friend, Obito Uchiha. Kakashi was Naruto's sensei and a skilled and loyal ninja. He regretted not being there for Naruto as much as he could. But now, he was trying to make up for it.

The last person was an old woman from Suna, who the young man recognized as Granny Chiyo. She was well-known as a skilled medic and puppet master. She also had the unfortunate honor of being the grandmother of the Akatsuki member and wanted criminal known as Sasori of the Red Sands. That's probably why she was here now, to try to rectify the sins of the past. But an old woman with good intentions would not defeat Sasori. It would take someone, who's fighting style and natural healing abilities neutralized most of his skills. That's one of the reasons that he had followed them on this mission. If he could take Sasori on his own, surely Naruto and Kakashi could handle Deidara easily enough.

He disappeared in a bright flash of light only to reappear behind them. Kakashi turned in response to the flash. What he saw shocked him beyond belief. There stood his brother in all but blood, Ryo Yagami. "Ryo, is that really you? I haven't seen you in seven years."

The silver-haired young man smiled at his friend and sworn brother. "It's good to see you Kakashi. I only wish that the circumstances were better."

"All the same, I'm glad you're here. Naruto, Sakura, this is my friend, teammate, and brother, Ryo Yagami. He has been out of the village on a long-term assignment for a quite a while." Kakashi said.

Sakura smiled and bowed, "It's a pleasure to meet you, Ryo-san. I've heard stories about you from Lady Tsunade."

Ryo chuckled, "So she tells stories about me, does she? I bet there's one story she hasn't told. Tell you what. The next time you see her, ask her what happened in Tanzaku Town, about ten years ago. I'll be interested in seeing what she says. "

"Hello, I'm Naruto Uzumaki. It's nice to meet you."

"Likewise, I've heard good things about you, Naruto. Anyway, now that the pleasantries are out of the way, it's time to deal with the task at hand." Just as Ryo said this, the smoke, from the huge rock blocking the opening being shattered, began to clear. There sat the two Akatsuki members. Deidara had long blonde hair and a mouth in each hand. Sasori was a hunchbacked man with a mask over his face.

Then they noticed something else. Deidara was setting on another body. It was the body of Gaara, the Kazekage, and Naruto's best friend. Naruto's eyes turned into red slits. "What have you done to Gaara?" he said in a tone that promised pain, if the answer was wrong.

Deidara chuckled. "Isn't it obvious? He's dead."

Naruto continued to grow angrier until his body started to give off a yellow glow. Kakashi looked on in amazement seeing something for the third time that he believed that he would never see again. "Ryo, is that what I think it is?" Kakashi asked.

Ryo Yagami smirked at the sight. "Yeah Kakashi, it is. It looks like we have some explaining to do, when we get back to Konoha. But right now, we have two pieces of Akatsuki scum to take care of."

Naruto stared hard at the two Akatsuki members. "Give Gaara back now, or I'll make you sorry."

"Deidara, take Gaara's body, since the boy wants it so." Sasori stated.

Deidara's smirk grew larger, "Ah, that is a good idea." Deidara took a clay bird out of his pouch. With the addition of his chakra, it grew to massive size. "Come and get him, if you want him, Kyubi brat." Deidara flew out of the cave going as fast as he could.

"**Come back here and fight you coward." **Ryo screamed in a demonic voice. He turned to Naruto and Kakashi. "Go after him. Get Gaara's body back." The two turned to go, but Ryo called to Naruto, "Listen Naruto, we're going to have a lot to tell you when this is over and we get back to Konoha, but, for now, I'll just tell you this. The glow coming off of your body is from your bloodline, the Hiraishin. Don't think about it too hard. Just feel it and it'll come to you. You'll know precisely how to use it. Deidara is a bomb expert, but he can't do anything against the combination of your jutsu and the Hiraishin. Now go."

Naruto and Kakashi leapt away chasing after Deidara. Ryo turned to Sakura and Chiyo. "The two of you should go after them, just in case they need some help. I'll take care of this guy."

"But Ryo-san, these Akatsuki members are dangerous. Are you sure you want to take him on alone?" Sakura asked.

Ryo smirked, "Sakura, I can appreciate your desire to prove yourself, but I'll be fine by myself. While I do have a working knowledge of medical jutsu, I don't even compare to Lady Tsunade in that department. But, I got her beat by a large margin, when it comes to combat. Also, Naruto and Kakashi might need your help."

Ryo walked over to the old woman known as Granny Chiyo. "Lady Chiyo, I know that Sasori is your grandson and that you feel in some way responsible for his crimes. You shouldn't feel that way. Listen, you have to let me take him on alone. I'm way faster than he could ever be, and my body has a natural immunity to poisons. Add my bloodline limits to the equation, and that makes me the perfect counter for Sasori and his puppets. Also, I already know that what I'm looking at is a puppet." Ryo whispered in the old woman's ear.

She nodded her head in understanding before whispering back, "Be careful. He makes human puppets that can retain there original jutsu and chakra systems." Ryo nodded back at her that he understood, before she turned around and followed the others.

Ryo turned his attention back to the puppet master. "Now that they're gone, the real fun begins."

"We will see how much fun you think it is when you're dead." Sasori responded.

"You just keep telling yourself that. After today, there'll be two less Akatsuki in the world. Enough with the banter though. I'm ready to get rid of you." Ryo said.

'_A frontal assault would be pretty stupid, since I don't know what that puppet's weapons are. That means I've got to create a diversion. Now which jutsu should I use? Ah, that one will be perfect. I don't expect it to destroy that armor, but I'll be able to hide in its wake giving me a chance to attack. Okay, let's do it.' _Ryo thought. He started going through a series of hand signs. "**Suiton: Suiryudon," **Ryo called out. A giant water dragon formed out of the water vapor in the air and rushed right at Sasori. Ryo ran right behind the dragon hoping to get in close and smash the puppet to bits. Sasori braced himself for the jutsu knowing it wouldn't do any real damage. The jutsu hit covering Sasori's line of sight with water.

He chuckled to himself, "That was a waste of chakra. Did you really think that my puppets were so flimsy that a mere water jutsu would destroy them?"

He got his answer in the form of Ryo leaping out of the still flowing water intent on using his strength to smash the puppet to pieces. However, the puppet's tail emerged from the cloak and swung right at Ryo. _'That thing has a tail.' _Ryo thought. He twisted his body to right in mid-air causing the long appendage to narrowly miss him. He landed on a rock only to back flip several feet landing safely out of the tail's reach.

"It seems you weren't expecting my puppet to have a tail. I wonder what else it can do that you weren't expecting." Sasori gloated.

Ryo gave him a devilish smirk, "Gloat while you can Puppet Freak. It won't be long before that puppet that serves as your armor is a scrap heap."

'_Now I know to watch out for that tail. It'll be easy to dodge though now that I can see it. What else does he have? Oh well, I guess I'll figure it out.' _Ryo thought. He started another series of hand signs before shouting, **"Katon: Karyu Endan." **Ryo blew flames out of his mouth that took the shape of a large fire dragon that flew straight at Sasori. It hit Sasori head-on and caused a big explosion of fire.

When the smoke cleared, Sasori was standing there unharmed after the intense jutsu. "Did you really expect to simply burn me to ash? Surely you know my puppets are made better than that." He was right. The only visible change was the clothes surrounding the puppet had been heavily damaged. "Now it's my turn to strike back." Sasori's puppet opened its mouth and spewed many senbon at Ryo coated in poison.

Ryo channeled chakra into his legs and jumped with all his might. He flipped in mid-air and missed the barrage of senbon. As soon as he landed on the ground, Sasori shot the gauntlet from his left arm. It stopped in the center of the room and started spinning rapidly firing sharp objects coated with poison in all directions.

'_It's just firing wildly. I can't dodge that as easily as I could the last attack. I might be immune to the poison, but I'll get turned into a pincushion, if that many blades hit me. Darn! I was hoping that I could hold off on using any of my bloodlines until he revealed his real self, but, considering I don't want to become a living pincushion, I guess I have no choice.' _Ryo thought.

Ryo ran through a short series of hand signs. Then he called out, **"Mokuton: Jukai Heki." **Trees branches started sprouting from the ground forming a net-like wall of wood that blocked Sasori's attack.

When the wall returned to the earth, Ryo stood there unharmed. "Okay Sasori, I've had it with that thing. Now, I'm going to crush it." He stared at Sasori for a minute. He reached inside his sleeves, under his shirt, and inside the legs of his pants and removed the weights from each respective place, before dropping them all to the floor leaving a large crater. "Now, you'll get a look at my real speed."

In a flash, Ryo was gone. He appeared behind Sasori without warning and grabbed the tail of his puppet Hiruko. He planted his right foot and pulled with all his might throwing the large puppet into the wall of the cave. Before Sasori could recover, Ryo was right there. He charged his left fist with chakra and punched with all his strength shattering the puppet.

A small shape jumped from the wreckage putting some distance between himself and Ryo. There stood a red-haired young man, or so Ryo thought. "So that's the real you? Good, now I can put an end to you."

Sasori smirked, "That is going to be harder than you think. Hiruko may have been one of my favorites, but he was by no means the only one. Nor was he my most powerful puppet. Let me show you my very favorite puppet. It will take much more to beat him." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a sealing scroll. He unsealed a humanoid puppet, with black hair.

Ryo laughed, "That doesn't look as intimidating as the last one. What do you think you're going to do with that?"

If anything, Sasori smirked more than Ryo had. "You'll see Ryo Yagami, if you live long enough, that is." The puppet rushed forward at an incredible speed surprising Ryo that Sasori could make it move so fast. Several blades emerged near the right arm and swung at Ryo. Ryo ducked under the first swing and went skidding across the ground.

It came around for another pass, but Ryo used his speed to leap to the left out of range of the puppet's attack. The puppet returned to Sasori. Then it extended its left hand and fired many hands trying to capture Ryo.

Ryo used his speed dodging right to left and back again. He kept moving as the hands just kept coming. Finally, he pushed chakra into his legs, before going into a back-flip. He flipped through the air for several feet until he was out of range of the hands. A canon emerged from the mass of hands and fired a purple cloud toward Ryo.

'_He still thinks he's going to poison me. Well, I'll show him.' _Ryo went into a complex series of hand signs, before calling out the technique, **"Yoton: Volcanic Geyser." **A huge wave of lava emerged from the ground and flew towards the gas and the mass of hands. Sasori released the mass of hands from his puppet to save it from being melted along with the rest.

"I must say. You are an interesting opponent. Earlier, you used a Mokuton jutsu. Now, you used a Yoton jutsu. It will be quite an achievement to take your head."

Ryo scowled at the puppet master, "Better than you have tried and failed. You'll fail just like they did."

Sasori smirked at Ryo's declaration. "We will see if you still sing the same tune when you're faced with a jutsu that most presumed to be dead." The sand in the area turned black and floated in the air around the puppet.

Ryo eyes' widened in shock at what he was seeing. _'That's the jutsu that the third Kazekage was famous for. I've heard stories about it, but I've never seen it in action. Wait, he was the only one who could do it, and he disappeared under mysterious circumstances.' _Ryo stared at the face of the puppet and came to a startling conclusion, but it was the only conclusion that makes sense. _'Sasori killed the third Kazekage. He killed him and turned his body into this puppet. This is not good. The Satetsu or Iron Sand Technique was supposed to be really versatile. Now, I have to find a way to counter it and get close enough to wreck that puppet.'_

"It's no use trying to come up with a strategy. I have won now. Accept your fate." Sasori wore a slight smile as he unleashed the technique. **"Iron Sand Shower," **he shouted.

Thousands of projectiles of iron sand went flying right at Ryo. _'So he thinks he's got me this time. Well, he's got another thing coming.' _Ryo sent chakra to his eyes and shouted one phrase, **"Shinra Tensei."**

The iron sand projectiles were sent flying back in the direction they had come, crashing into the ground all around Sasori. When the smoke cleared, Sasori looked across the cave at Ryo and what he saw was rather shocking. There stood Ryo just as he was except for one thing. His eyes had turned grey and had rings running through them. "You have the Rinnegan? That's fantastic. I've always wandered what it would be like to face Leader-sama. Now I can find out without actually facing him."

"What do you mean?"

"Don't you know? The leader of the Akatsuki has the Rinnegan."

'_What? There's another Rinnegan user besides me, and, of all people to have it, it had to be the leader of the Akatsuki. The legends about the Rinnegan say that, if a good person has it, they will have the power to perform great deeds. But they go on to say that if an evil person has it, they will have access to horrible techniques. This is the worst news that he could have given me.'_

Ryo stared at Sasori with new determination, "Alright Sasori, the gloves are coming off now. It's time for the real show to begin."

"Actually, it's time for me to finish you and go on my way." The iron sand formed into many tendrils and went after Ryo. Ryo used his incredible speed and leaped from left to right and back to forward dodging the sharp tendrils. Then he noticed something dripping off of the sand. _'He's poisoned the iron sand too. It's like he's the poison fanatic. Well, he won't be for much longer. Somehow, I've got to get close to that puppet and destroy it but how. Oh, I know. You're finished now Sasori.'_

Just as he was finishing his thought, Ryo noticed a dark shadow over his shoulder. He turned to see the puppet swinging its bladed right arm at him. It was too late to dodge. As soon as the blades struck, Ryo burst into smoke. "What? It was a shadow clone. Then where's the real one?"

In answer to his question, several dozen clones appeared out of nowhere. "So, you think that you can trick me with clones, do you?" Sasori orchestrated the puppet into making even larger iron sand projectiles. He hurled them at the clones destroying them by the groups. He appeared to finally have the upper hand until a voice said, **"Kirigakure no Jutsu."**

A heavy mist appeared throughout the cave. The appearance of the mist was followed by the sound of lightning crackling in the air. The real Ryo came up out of the ground behind the puppet with lightning surrounding his right hand. **"Raikiri," **he shouted as he drove the attack right through the puppet shattering it to pieces. The iron sand disappeared with the mist leaving Ryo and Sasori standing there facing each other once again.

"Hahahahahahahahaha" Sasori's cruel laughter filled the cavern.

Ryo stared at Sasori with a look of anger and utter contempt. "I just destroyed another of your best puppets. What the hell do you find so funny?"

Sasori's face was impassive, "You want to know what I find so funny. Fine then, I'll tell you. It's just been such a long time sense I've had to use myself."

Ryo felt a chill go across his skin as he took in what Sasori said. "What do you mean use yourself? Are you crazy?"

"No, I'm not crazy. I made myself into a puppet." Sasori dropped the Akatsuki robe to the ground showing his real body. He had some blades attached to his back and a hook-like anchor in his chest. A row of scrolls were lined up and down his back.

'_This guy's a monster. This has got to be one of the sickest things that I've ever seen. Considering that I helped Sarutobi-sensei find and look through several of Orochimaru's labs, that's really saying a lot. Alright freak, it's time to put an end to you.' _Ryo thought.

Sasori shot the hook right out of his chest heading towards Ryo at great speed. Ryo dodged to the left missing the hook by mere inches. Sasori leapt into the air and lunged at Ryo trying to decapitate him with the blades on his back. Ryo bent over backwards narrowly missing the blades. Sasori pulled back the hook and shot it at Ryo again. This time, Ryo sent chakra to his feet and legs.

Just as the hook was coming at him, he used all his strength to jump. He started flipping in the air, until he hung from the ceiling well out of Sasori's reach. _'Alright, I've had more than enough. It's time to finish off this crazy nutcase, and I know just how to do it.'_

Ryo flipped off the ceiling and landed on his feet. "Not only are you a sick freak Sasori, but you've also been involved in the deaths of at least two Kages. Therefore, it's only fitting that the special techniques of two of the Kages be the end of you." Ryo said. He began focusing water chakra into his left arm. A few seconds later, he disappeared in a yellow flash. He reappeared behind Sasori and spoke the words, **"Suiton: Koka Suijin." **A drill of water formed around Ryo's left arm. In an instant, he slammed it through Sasori's chest piercing the central component keeping him alive.

"I see. You really were as good as you said you were. That was the second Hokage's jutsu, if I'm not mistaken. For you to also know the Rinnegan and the Hiraishin is incredible. I don't know why I'm doing this, but I'm going to give you a tip. Call it a reward for defeating me. I know that your village desires to kill Orochimaru, the village's biggest traitor. It so happens that I have a spy in his camp. I am supposed to meet him a month from now at noon at the Tenshi Bridge in the hidden grass village."

With those words, Sasori of the Red Sands breathed his last. Ryo walked over and fell back against the doorway of the cave. Despite the fact that he has a lot of chakra, he was pretty tired from using so many high level jutsu. "I did my part. The rest is up to you Naruto. Show him what it means to face a Hiraishin-user."

(Elsewhere)

"This is so frustrating. We've been chasing him forever. He keeps tossing those stupid bombs and stays just out of reach. If only we could-"Naruto was interrupted by the memory of what Ryo told him.

"_Don't think about it too hard. Just feel it, and it'll come to you. You'll know precisely how to use it. Deidara is a bomb expert, but he can't do anything against the combination of your jutsu and the Hiraishin."_

"Kakashi-sensei, I think I understand what Ryo was trying to tell me about the Hiraishin. Even though I've never used it, I know how. I can feel it inside myself. I can beat him." Naruto said. After he said it, it was like he could here voices saying, _"That's the way Naruto. Now show him what it means to fight a Namikaze."_

Kakashi gave his famous eye-smile. "If you've got it, then do what you have to do. He'll lose his concentration when you strike him. The bird will fall, and I'll get Gaara's body back. I know you can do it Naruto, and I know your parents and Ryo are behind you too."

Naruto smiled and started to concentrate on the space behind Deidara. Seconds later, he disappeared in a yellow flash. He reappeared behind Deidara. Deidara started to turn around reacting to the yellow flash, but he was punched in the face hard by Naruto and sent flying into a tree.

Naruto leapt to a tree branch as the clay bird crashed to the ground. Deidara slipped to the ground and started to get up only to be met with an elbow to the ribs. Before he could make another move, Naruto grabbed him by the throat and threw him headfirst into another tree.

Deidara managed to toss a bomb Naruto's way as he flew through the air. Naruto disappeared in another yellow flash and reappeared in front of Deidara kneeing him in the chest. He followed up with a backhand to the face. Deidara reached into his pouch for more clay, but Naruto grabbed his hand. Naruto put so much pressure on it that he felt the bones break.

Naruto backed off a little and smirked at the Akatsuki member's pained expression. Deidara pushed chakra to his legs and started running at top speed to escape from Naruto. Naruto just shook his head before disappearing in a yellow flash. He reappeared in front of Deidara and kicked him between the legs.

"How does it feel to be knocked around like a ragdoll? I hate the Akatsuki for what they do. You come after the Biju for whatever mad plan that you're up to, and you think its okay to kill the hosts to get them. You forget that we're people too, and we have the right to live just like everyone else." Naruto shouted.

Deidara smirked, "Why don't you shut up with your lecture. I don't care. All I care about is my artful explosions." He tossed another bomb at Naruto. Once again, Naruto used the Hiraishin to dodge the blast. He reappeared behind Deidara with a wind-powered Rasengan in his hand.

"This is what happens to scumbags like you Deidara." Deidara turned around and received Naruto's wind-powered Rasengan right in the face. At full power, the attack caused Deidara's head to explode. Naruto looked at the remains of the fallen Akatsuki member with contempt. Then he turned around and started walking towards Kakashi. Right about then, Sakura and Granny Chiyo arrived at the scene.

Sakura looked around at the craters left by Deidara's explosives. "Is it over? Did you beat him?"

Kakashi flashed Sakura his famous eye-smile. "Yes, it is, and Naruto crushed him all by himself. How did the fight with Sasori go?"

Sakura frowned, "We don't know. Ryo insisted on fighting alone." She turned her attention to Naruto. "Are you alright, Naruto?"

Naruto gave her a weak smile, "Yeah, I'm fine, but Gaara's not."

"I can save him, but we need to get him to an open space, quickly." Granny Chiyo said.

The team rushed off to a clearing. They laid Gaara down on the ground. Chiyo leaned over him, and her hands started glowing. Shortly thereafter, Gai's team appeared nearby along with Ryo.

Kakashi looked up, "It looks like you made it Ryo."

Ryo smirked, "He pushed me a little harder than I expected. I had to use three bloodlines out of five, but I got the job done."

Everyone's attention turned to Granny Chiyo. "Young ones listen to me. I have made a lot of mistakes that I regret, but you are still young. Naruto Uzumaki-Namikaze, I hope that you make your father proud and become a greater Hokage than any who have come before you. You indeed have a special way of reaching people. Sakura, you are a young but promising medic, and you possess a spirit surpassing your teacher. Help those that you care about and live a life with few regrets."

She turned her attention back to Naruto, "Naruto, I ask that you look after Gaara. He will need a friend like you."

After a little more time, Gaara started to hear voices. _'Who is that calling for me?' _

He started to rise and saw Naruto standing over him. Not only that. There was an assortment of sand and leaf ninja across the field. Ryo spoke up, "See Kazekage-sama, you are so loved by your people that they all came to rescue you."

Gaara stared at the crowd surrounding him. He never thought so many people would have cared about him. "However, the ones that you should thank the most are Naruto and Ryo and Granny Chiyo." Kakashi stated.

Temari looked on with tears in her eyes. She kneeled down and hugged Gaara. "I'm so glad that you're okay." She turned to face Naruto. "Thank you so much for saving my brother."

The blonde gave a slight smile, "I was glad to do it, and I'd do it again in an instant if necessary."

Kankuro walked up to the pair of leaf ninja, "I'd like to thank the two of you too. You saved my brother."

Ryo stared towards the body of Granny Chiyo, "No, we didn't do that much. All Naruto and I did was kill the two Akatsuki members. Granny Chiyo was the one who brought him back. She made the ultimate sacrifice for her village, by giving her life in exchange for bringing back Gaara."

The group followed his eyes and stared at the body in Sakura's arms. "So, that's what she did huh?" Naruto asked quietly. Ryo nodded. "You know, I thought it must have been something like that." Naruto whispered, but Ryo heard it.

"Naruto, Granny Chiyo entrusted the future of the elemental nations to you. She believed in you that much after just spending a little time with you. You really do bring about changes in people. You know, your father was like that too. He was a great man, wasn't he Ryo?"

Ryo nodded, "Yeah, he was, and we have a lot to talk about when we get back to Konoha. But for now, we need to return to Suna. We have a funeral to prepare."

(Three days later: Suna: just after the funeral)

"Alright everyone, it's time to go." Kakashi said.

"Okay, Kakashi-sensei, we're right behind you." Naruto said. He turned to Sakura, "Come on Sakura, let's go."

Naruto walked away from the grave sight until he came face to face with Gaara. He smiled, "It was good to see you again Gaara. I just wish that the circumstances had been better. I just wanted to say congratulations on becoming Kazekage." He extended his hand to Gaara.

"Thank you for everything you've done my friend." Gaara said and took his hand and shook it.

Naruto smiled, "It was no trouble. I'll see you again my friend."

With that, the leaf ninja turned around and started heading for home. The sand siblings watched them leave. As she watched Temari thought to herself, _'this is twice I owe you Naruto Uzumaki. I promise that I will find a way to repay you for giving me back my little brother twice. As you would say, it's my promise of a lifetime.'_

As the leaf ninja traveled, Naruto and Ryo were in the lead. Naruto turned to his new friend and asked the question plaguing his mind. "So, are you ready to tell me yet, Ryo-san?"

Ryo chuckled, "No, we'll wait until we get back to Konoha, so that Tsunade and Jiraiya can be in on this. By the way, just call me Ryo. I don't like all that formality stuff."

As they moved, one kunoichi was having interesting thoughts.

'_He really has changed since we were kids. When I first met him just before the Chunin Exams, I never thought he'd amount to much. But then, he defeated Neji and Gaara. Now, he's defeated a member of the Akatsuki and single-handed too. He's really gotten cute too. I never would have thought that the smallest of our generation would turn into such a handsome man.' _Tenten thought to herself.

Meanwhile, Sakura was having thoughts of her own. _'Wow, he's really gotten better. I can't believe he defeated an Akatsuki member all by himself. He's actually gotten cuter too. I wonder what kind of training he did to get that good.'_

The trip back was relatively quick and quiet. They reached the village in a couple of days taking a leisurely pace. Now the group was gathered in the Hokage's office, where Tsunade, Shizune, and Jiraiya were waiting.

Tsunade looked up at the group, and then she noticed Ryo. "Ryo, it's very good to see you again. I wasn't sure if you would ever come back."

Ryo walked up and gave her a hug. "Yeah, well, I just had to come see you. We can reminisce about the good times later." He winked at her, and she blushed.

That's when Sakura remembered, "So, there is something between you. What exactly happened ten years ago?"

Tsunade turned three shades redder and looked up at Sakura and then at Ryo, "You told her about that?"

Ryo smirked, "I didn't exactly tell her. I just kind of hinted at it. She was talking about all the stories that you've told her about me, and I just couldn't resist. Nevertheless, now is not the time. We do have important business to attend to."

The Hokage breathed a sigh of relief, "Very well, give me the report."

Ryo smirked, "We were successful in eliminating two members of the Akatsuki. The only death was Granny Chiyo, who gave her life reviving Gaara. Also, Naruto activated his bloodline limit, the famous Hiraishin."

Tsunade wore a look of shock, "So it's finally happened. I guess we have no choice but to tell him everything. Everyone, except for Ryo, Kakashi and Naruto, you are dismissed."

After the others left, Ryo flashed through a few hand signs putting up a silence seal around the room. "Alright, let's begin the meeting. Naruto, do you have any idea who your parents are?"

Naruto thought about it, "I've got a pretty good idea who my father is, but I don't know about my mother."

Ryo nodded, "Okay, that's fair enough. Your father was a hero in the third ninja war. He was no less than the famed Yellow Flash of Konoha, Minato Namikaze. He became famous for his Hiraishin. You know, it's kind of funny. He tricked almost everyone into believing that the Hiraishin was connected to these three-pronged kunai that he carried." Ryo pulled one from his pocket and held it up for Naruto to see. "He only told a select few that it was his bloodline. The only ones, who knew besides me, were Kakashi, Jiraiya, Tsunade, Sarutobi, the two advisors that were Sarutobi's teammates, and your mother, Kushina Uzumaki. They were the only ones that Minato trusted. Do you have any questions, before I tell you more about your mother?"

"Yeah, I have one. If the Hiraishin is a bloodline, why do you have it?" Naruto asked.

Ryo nodded, "I guess that's a fair question. I lost my parents, when I was just a kid. My father was from the Yagami Clan. They were direct descendents of the Sage of the Six Paths himself. They had the Rinnegan, just like he did. He met my mother, while traveling. She was from the Kaguya Clan. They were wielders of a bloodline called the Shikotsumyaku, but it's more commonly called the "Dead Bone Pulse." It gives the user complete control over their bones. If I'm not mistaken, you faced a user of it a few years ago."

Naruto thought about it until he remembered, "Oh, I remember now. It was that Kimimaro guy that worked for Orochimaru."

"Anyway, my parents hid the knowledge of their bloodlines from everyone and settled down here in Konoha. Unfortunately, they died suddenly on a mission. Sarutobi-sensei took me in and looked after me. I was originally on another team, but I was reassigned to Minato-sensei's team after Obito died. Shortly thereafter, I was approached inside my mind by Seiryu, the Ten-Tailed Blue Dragon. He was a little different from the other Biju. He seals himself inside his host, but he would only do so, if he found them to be worthy. When I was sixteen, he told me that he was going to give me two more bloodlines. The first was an elemental bloodline. It doesn't have a name, but it works like this. All the elemental bloodlines originated from the same place. It's like this. If a person was born with earth and water, they could use wood release like the first Hokage. Well, I have all five affinities because of my Rinnegan. Because of that, I can use Ice, Lava, Storm, and Wood. If there are others that I can use, I haven't found them yet."

Naruto smiled slightly, "That is a pretty amazing bloodline to give you access to all that."

"Yeah, I guess it is. Anyway, Seiryu let me choose the other. I chose the Hiraishin, because I respected your father so much. He was like a second father to Kakashi and me."

"So, on top of having all these amazing bloodlines, you're also a container yourself. That means that the Akatsuki are after you too." Naruto remarked.

Ryo smirked, "That's not exactly true. First of all, there are very few people who know of Seiryu's existence. Besides, that's a little different anyway. Since he will only give his power to someone who is honorable and just, they would die if they tried to extract him from me."

Naruto nodded his head, "I see. I guess we can get back to my mother then."

"When the Whirlpool Village was destroyed, your mother, Kushina Uzumaki, was the only survivor. She made her way here, where she joined Konoha. She was placed on the same team as Minato, and they got closer and closer over time. Eventually, they got married. After a couple years of trying, she got pregnant. A few months later, you were born."

Naruto sat there taking in everything that Ryo had told him.

Tsunade got up and went to the safe on the wall behind Minato's picture and pulled out two large scrolls and one small one. She turned and handed them to Naruto. "Naruto, these scrolls contain your parents' jutsu. We were supposed to give them to you when you were ready."

Naruto smiled, "Thank you Baachan."

Tsunade smiled at her surrogate little brother, "I'm happy for him. He looks happier than I've ever seen him."

Ryo smiled back at her, "Yeah well, finding out about your parents will do that to you."

Tsunade smirked, "Alright Naruto, you are dismissed. Go see your friends."

Naruto gave her a hug before going out the door.

Tsunade smiled, "He really has matured a lot."

Kakashi and Jiraiya left soon after. Finally, Tsunade and Ryo were the only ones left.

Ryo looked at her confused, "Weren't we going to warn him about the CRA?"

Tsunade looked at Ryo with worried eyes and said, "I know Ryo, but I just couldn't tell him yet. He's going to be put under a lot of pressure when they find out. Do you think he'll be okay?"

Ryo stared at the door that Naruto and the others had left from. "I hope so, but I don't know. We can only keep this from the council for so long though. The best we can do for him is to ensure that the ones that he marries are girls that will truly love him. He could use the love after all that he's had to go through in his life."

He walked over to Tsunade and gave her a hug. Then Shizune came in. "Excuse me for interrupting Lady Tsunade. There's a blonde girl from Kumo here with a letter for Ryo. She looks to be about Naruto's age, give or take a year or two."

Ryo's widened in understanding, "Send her in Shizune."

A tall blonde girl walked into the Hokage's office. When she saw Ryo, she rushed to him and hugged him crying into his chest. Ryo was stunned. The last time he saw this girl she was fairly happy at least. "Tsunade let me introduce my surrogate little sister, Yugito Nii. When I lived in Kumo for about two years, I looked after her. She doesn't have any family. Yugito, why are you crying?"

Without saying a word, she pulled an envelope out of her pocket and gave it to him. He opened it and started to read.

_To Ryo, _

_I hope this letter finds you well. I hate having to do this, but I'm just going to tell you the cold hard truth. Kirabi and I have tried our best to protect young Yugito, but all our efforts have been in vain. Some of the villagers have tried to attack her. They've tried to rape her. Fortunately, none of their attempts have been successful. I got word recently that a few members of the council were conspiring to have her killed. When I heard this, I was truly saddened. I knew then that I had failed._

_That's when I remembered you. No sooner did that come to my memory, than one of my subordinates came in and gave me a shocking message. They reported to me that you and a young blonde boy defeated two members of the Akatsuki. Imagine my surprise, when they told me that they believed that he could be no less than the son of the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze. When they told me that he was fighting to save another demon container, I thought that maybe he would befriend her. She needs friends her own age Ryo. The only people that she's close to are Kirabi and you and me. I have enclosed in this letter all the papers to allow her to join your village freely. Please take care of her, and tell her I'm sorry. I hope she can forgive me someday._

_Signed you brother in all but blood_

_The Raikage_

Ryo stared at the letter, before handing it to Tsunade and allowing her to read it. She read the letter quickly. "Which one is she Ryo?"

Ryo sighed, "She's the container of Nibi, the Two-tailed Cat."

Tsunade got up from her desk and walked over to Yugito. She hugged her from behind. "Yugito-chan, I promise you that everything will be okay. I know it really hurts right now, but everything's going to be okay."

When Yugito finally looked up, Ryo smiled and said, "Yugito-chan, how would you like to meet another demon container? He's right around your age, and I know that he'll accept you."

"Do you really think so?" Yugito asked in a meek voice.

"I know so, Yugito-chan."

(Elsewhere in the village)

Naruto was walking down the street, when he ran into Kiba and Shino, along with Akamaru. "Hey guys, how's it going?"

Kiba and Shino looked up and saw that the one calling too them was their old friend Naruto. "It's good to see you Naruto. I trust your journey was constructive." Shino stated.

Naruto smiled, "Yeah, I learned a lot of new jutsu. I've gotten a lot stronger, but it looks like the two of you have too."

Kiba smirked at his old friend, "It's great to see you Naruto. The village just hasn't been the same without you."

"Well, I missed all of you too. It was kind of lonely on the road with Ero-sennin. Anyway, I need your help. Could the two of you help me find Hinata? I need to talk to her."

Kiba smirked, "Have you finally gotten a clue Naruto?"

Naruto's face took on a serious countenance. "Yes, I have Kiba. It's time that I do something about it."

Shino analyzed Naruto for a moment before walking to the corner and turning to Hinata, "You have to talk to him sometime. Why can it not be now?"

Hinata looked at one of her surrogate brothers, "B-but I d-don't know what t-to s-say to him."

"Perhaps, you should try listening then. He seems to have something of vast importance on his mind. He needs help; help that only you can give. The choice is yours." With that Shino walked back to Naruto and Kiba.

'_Maybe he's right. I've got to face him. It's now or never.' _ Hinata gathered her courage and walked out into the street and turned to face Naruto.

When Naruto saw her, he was blown away. In three years, she had gotten more beautiful than he could have imagined. He quickly gathered himself. "Hey Hinata-chan, it's great to see you again." He gave her a bright smile.

"Hello Naruto-kun, it's g-good to s-see you again." Hinata smiled back. _'Wow, he's gotten more handsome than ever.'_

"Hinata, I really need to talk to you. It's very important. Will you come with me?" Naruto asked.

Hinata smiled, "I will Naruto-kun." He took her hand, and they started walking together. Shino and Kiba watched them leave. They were happy that the two were finally going to talk.

Naruto took Hinata to an out of the way training field. They sat down under a tree. Naruto turned and looked at Hinata. "Alright Hinata, I've had three years to think about things, and I've come to a realization. I thought back about all the times that your face got red and all the times that you fainted and all the times that I noticed you following me or watching me. Back when we were kids, I just thought that you were weird. I couldn't understand why you did any of those things. You have to understand something though. I didn't have anyone to teach me about things like this. I talked it over with Jiraiya, and I did a lot of thinking."

He stopped for a moment letting his words sink in. "I gained more than just greater ninja skills on the road. I gained greater knowledge and life experience. I realized that you weren't being weird at all. You were just like any other girl that is shy in the presence of the boy she likes."

Hinata gasped. He knew that she liked him. "Naruto, I-"He stopped her from continuing. "Hinata-chan, I wasn't finished. I thought about all the times that we shared together. I realized that I really have fun being around you. You make me happy. Hinata-chan, what I'm trying to say is that I'm in love with you."

Hinata gaped at him. He finally said the words to her that she always wanted to hear. In the past, she would have fainted. But this time, it was like something changed. She pulled all her courage and put her arms around his neck. He pulled her closer to him and closed the gap between them. He kissed her on the lips. It was a soft chaste kiss, but the emotions involved spoke volumes. Naruto loved the feel of her lips on his. He would have stopped time, if he could. But eventually, they had to break apart for air.

They sat there panting for a few moments. Hinata's lavender eyes were glazed over. _'Wow! That was even better than I thought it would be.' _she thought.

Naruto gathered his thoughts knowing that he had to tell her the rest. "Hinata, I found out who my parents are. My father is the fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze."

Hinata gasped in shock, "Are you serious?"

Naruto took a deep breath. "When we were on the mission to rescue Gaara, my bloodline activated. When we returned earlier today, I was brought into a meeting with the Hokage, Ero-sennin, Kakashi-sensei, and a man named Ryo Yagami. They told me who my parents were Hinata-chan."

Hinata's smile grew at the news. "That's wonderful news Naruto-kun."

Hinata looked at Naruto. He did indeed look like the Yondaime. _'He's the last of his clan. I wonder if he knows about the CRA. Oh well, I guess we'll cross that bridge when we come to it,'_ she thought. "Naruto-kun, who all knows about this?"

"Tsunade, Ryo, Jiraiya, and Kakashi are the only ones that know about my heritage. Everyone else that went on the mission knows about my bloodline though." Naruto answered.

Hinata smiled at her new boyfriend, "Naruto-kun, I love you." She kissed him again on the lips.

When they broke the kiss for air, Naruto asked, "Would you like to go to Ichiraku's with me Hinata-chan?"

She smiled at him, "Sure, let's go." The young couple got up and walked to the ramen stand while holding hands.

**Author's note: Hey everybody, this story is my response to itchaitchacritic's challenge **_**The Revival of the Namikaze. **_**I hope this story is well liked. As usual, I ask for no flames, because flames don't help anybody. However, I do welcome constructive criticism. I hope to make this story good.**

**I just want to point out a few things. **

**First, I've got a few girls picked out for the Harem. But I still have some spots open. If you have any preferences, let me know in a review or private message. **

**Second, these were my first real fight scenes. I will improve as I go along, so go easy with the criticism of them. Also, I wanted to point out something. I know that Ryo's fight was better than Naruto's. At least, I thought so, but that was done on purpose. The reason is that I think Deidara is the biggest weakling of all the Akatsuki. (except maybe Zetsu: I don't know much about him. All I've seen him do is spy.) Anyway, I thought that Naruto would just crush him, if he had the Hiraishin. I mean all Deidara has going for him are those stupid bombs. Anyway, Naruto will have much better fights later on. Ryo will also have better fights. Someone will push him to the limit a little more.**


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